Nigeria has called for adequate, predictable and sustainable funding for the United Nations (UN) Resident Coordinator System to strengthen development coordination and advance sustainable development across member states.
The call was contained in Nigeria’s National Statement on Agenda Item 138, titled “Proposed Programme Budget for 2027: Resident Coordinator System”, delivered by the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (HCSF), Mr Olumuyiwa Abel.
Mrs Eno Olotu, Director of Press and Public Relations, Office of the HCSF made this known in a statement on Wednesday in Abuja.
The statement, according to her, was delivered at the 10th plenary meeting of the Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary Committee) of the 81st Session of the UN General Assembly in New York.
Abel described the strengthening of the Resident Coordinator System as a shared objective in advancing multilateralism and improving the effectiveness of the UN development system.
He noted that a well-resourced system was essential to providing coordinated development support aligned with the national priorities and needs of member states.
The HCSF stressed that adequate, predictable and sustainable financing was critical to maintaining the system’s core coordination capacities, retaining institutional expertise and enabling Resident Coordinators to effectively discharge their responsibilities.
He also highlighted the strategic importance of the system to Africa, noting that 53 of the 132 Resident Coordinator Offices worldwide were located on the continent, representing about 40 per cent of its global geographical presence.
“The extensive presence of the system in Africa underscores its critical role in supporting countries to implement their national development priorities, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the African Union’s Agenda 2063. ”
Abel used the occasion to call on countries of the Global North to fulfil their development assistance commitments and urged major donor countries to sustain and substantially increase their core contributions to the UN development system through predictable, sustained and multi-year funding.
He maintained that a well-funded Resident Coordinator System remained indispensable to delivering coherent, reliable and effective UN support for sustainable development.
“Nigeria reaffirmed its readiness to engage constructively in the consideration of the reports and in initiatives aimed at strengthening the system and promoting a more effective, responsive and adequately resourced multilateral development framework, ” he said.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the session was particularly significant for Nigeria, as the UN Secretary-General’s report on the Resident Coordinator System was presented by the Deputy Secretary-General, Ms Amina Mohammed, a Nigerian.
Also, Nigeria’s prominent role was further underscored by the chairmanship of the Fifth Committee by the country’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Jimoh Ibrahim.